By Immaculate Wanyenze
The harsh search for better life is what drives most profit-seeking criminals into smuggling. They are willing to take risks in search of a better life for failure to utilize legal channels. John Paul Wandera, a Director in the Gold Coast Cargo Hauliers Ltd, is one such culprit. He recently ordered for offloading of goods in non-gazetted customs area to escape proper clearance processes.
On 7th October, URA received information of missing goods from a truck number KCC 138U that had crossed Uganda through Malaba border. A team was dispatched to verify these claims at Maina ICD. On reaching there, the truck was opened and only one bale of assorted garments was found weighing 102 kg against the declared tonnage of 1870kgs.
Even the scanner image at Malaba showed a truck with many bales of garments, yet only one was declared. The Malaba weigh bridge suggested net weight of 1,260 kgs. The truck had only two openings with seals and the other two were not sealed.
Upon interception, Kennedy Opondo and Joseph Emodo the drivers of the truck, confirmed that they loaded seven bales of clothes at Malaba. They added that, a one Robert they had moved in company with told them to park as soon as they reach Kazinga channel in Mukono.
Here, Wandera, now the owner of the goods, offloaded 6 bales of textile through the openings of the truck that had not been sealed. These bales were kept in an abandoned factory for “security.” He then asked Robert to take the remaining goods in the truck to Maina ICD.
After verification by the URA team, Wandera and his team were arrested to account for the missing goods and their truck too has been seized including its consignments.
According to Geoffrey Balamaga, the Manager Customs operations, Wandera and his team caused URA a loss of UGX 30,800,782. These have been charged with interference of goods under customs control with an intention to evade payment of duty. They have also been charged with fraudulent evasion of payment of duty and mis-declaration of goods.
In order to avoid future occurrences, Balamaga urged Wandera’s group and those with similar intentions to only clear goods at customs controlled areas or else face punitive measures.
Pictures by Irene Kabakama, Media Management
